The captaincy speculation behind the eye-popping trade deal pertaining to Hardik Pandya, between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans, grew bigger by the day, before MI made it official on Friday. Naming Hardik as the new captain of Mumbai wasn’t however surprising, as he replaced Rohit Sharma, one of the most successful IPL skippers of all time. What was indeed was shocking was the manner in which the curtains were drawn on Rohit’s captaincy career. But according to an Indian Express report, the announcement was always around the corner.
It was only 20 days back when MI announced the return of Hardik in an all-cash deal with Gujarat. The star all-rounder, who was once a core member of the franchise, was released in 2022 when Gujarat had signed him as their captain. Hardik led the debutants to a trophy haul the same year before they finished as runner-up in 2023.
According to sources close to the national daily, Hardik had set the precondition that he would only return to Mumbai of offered the captaincy role as well. The 30-year-old had made it clear to the franchise, who after consultation, agreed to the captaincy clause. The report further added that Rohit was informed about Mumbai Indians’ roadmap and the need for an immediate change in captaincy, through a series of meetings, before he agreed to play under Hardik in the impending season.
In a release put out by the franchise on Friday along with the announcement, MI’s global head of performance Mahela Jayawardene said, “It is part of legacy building and staying true to the MI philosophy of being future-ready. Mumbai Indians have always been blessed with exceptional leadership right from Sachin to Harbhajan and Ricky to Rohit, who while contributing to the immediate success have always had an eye on strengthening the team for the future. It is in keeping with this philosophy that Hardik Pandya will assume captaincy of Mumbai Indians for the IPL 2024 season.”
The release also added, “We express our gratitude to Rohit Sharma for his exceptional leadership; his tenure as the captain of the Mumbai Indians since 2013 has been nothing short of extraordinary. His leadership has not only brought unparalleled success to the team but has also solidified his place as one of the finest captains in the history of the IPL.”
End of era
With the big announcement of Hardik taking over the leadership role in Mumbai, it marked the end of a glorious period for the franchise itself under Rohit. He had taken over the duties midway through the 2013 season when Ricky Ponting had taken the tough call owing to his dwindling batting numbers, and MI never looked back thereafter. They won the trophy that season, along with the presently-defunct Champions League T20, before claiming four more IPL crowns. Overall, he led MI to 87 wins during his tenure, the most by any captain in the period of last 10 years. Not to forget, MI never lost a final under Rohit.